Kay Kimball Presents Family Law
Kay Kimball, '95, was the February 24, 2010, Lunch & Learn speaker for the Children and Family Law Center.
Kimball talked about what she does as a family law attorney and more generally what it means to be an attorney. Attorneys perform many different roles for their clients, they advise, they are a counselor for their client, they are the peacemaker that looks for settlement options, they are a business person, they are a foe to opposing counsel, and they do what they can to help.
According to Kimball, there are many things that are essential to being a great attorney, but the most important is respect. Attorneys must respect the court, opposing counsel, clients, and themselves. This means being open about regulations with the court, being an advocate for the client, but not disrespecting your fellow attorneys. It means respecting the assistants and judicial clerks because there is a lot that they can do to assist an attorney.
Family Law has one of the highest burn out rates due to the high conflict and emotional turmoil attorneys are forced to deal with, so an attorney must find a healthy release. There are going to be tough clients and tough cases, but an attorney must do their best and notify the clients of the realistic goals and expectations they should have, but then let go of the case at the end and move on to the next one.
Melinda Wicks contributed to this article. Posted March 2, 2010.
